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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: board · stand · scale · squash · chair · press · straw · club

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. board — to get on
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. chair — a leader
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. press — a publisher
  7. club — for golf
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. press — newspapers
  12. press — to push
  13. scale — size or range
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. scale — in music
  20. stand — to bear
  21. club — a group
  22. board — a committee
  23. squash — to crush
  24. board — a flat piece

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com